Not One of Us
by Gingercookiessnaps
Summary: Doji had fallen to Ryo as he managed to defeat him in battle. The Pride Lands had entered an era of peace, and all the animals were happy with it. In the Barren Lands, a lioness plotted her revenge in the form of a small cub that was lost and abandoned. A lion that was strong and strong willed ... he was perfect. Meanwhile, Pridelanders had their own cubs to attend too - (AU)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **I have another story, and this one is going to be fun. (Also where I decide to pair Mana and Ryuga, because why the hell not?) It's obviously an AU. I had the urge to write a Lion King II type of story with the beyblade characters. Don't worry. The others will appear as well. I also know that Yu and Kenta aren't the same age, but they are for this story. Kay? Kay. Please review and let me know what you think!

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**Not One of Us – Chapter 1**

The tan furred lioness paced back and forth as she growled in frustration. Her tail swayed back and forth as she stared at the cub sleeping on a broken tree stump. The cub had a white furred tuft on his tail; it was currently laying on his nose to keep it warm. Golden-amber eyes glowed as she walked outside of the den. Her pride of lionesses were eating scrapes of food. Nobody was living in luxury; they were far from the Pride Lands. Her ears twitched as she heard one of the lionesses approached her.

"Empress, what are we going to do?" she asked. "We're not going to survive in the barren lands."

"I know this," she snarled. "My son, when he's old enough, will avenge us. Do not worry. We'll have the lands once again."

The other lionesses roared as they heard their Empress' words; they would rule the lands once again. She laughed before walking back into the den to take care of her son. He wasn't really her son, though. The cub was found when they were banished. The leader took him in as she saw a spark about the cub … a strong spark. One that she could mold to make him angry at the other lions. She licked the top of her cub's head before going to lay on her rock. The next couple of years were going to be training for the young cub.

_~Time Skip~_

She stepped over the rock without moving it as her tail swayed from side to side. The young lioness was hunting her friend, and it was going pretty well. She made no noises as a lioness should be quiet, like a ninja, as she hunted her prey. Rounded ears perked as she thought about her statement. Assassin is a better term since she did kill her prey without them, pretty much, noticing her. Her back hunched as she spotted the male lion cub sleeping in the tall grass. His green tuft tail swayed with the breeze. She got ready to pounce.

"Mana!"

"Gah!" the lioness shouted as she jumped from her cover.

The effect was instant as blue eyes snapped open as Kyoya stood and tackled the lioness to the ground. Mana yelped as she felt her back hit a rock. The lion growled, well as much as a cub could, as he continued to pin her to the ground. Mana snarled before she snapped her head to stare at the culprit, upside down, which ruined her hunt. He had darker tanned fur with a tuft of red hair on his head and tail. He grinned at her as his tail tapped the ground impatiently. The lioness cub managed to push Kyoya off of her before rolling onto her stomach.

"What's so important that you ruined my chance to ruin Kyoya's nap, Gingka?"

The lion stared at her for a few seconds before his important announcement came rushing back to him. He jumped to his paws and pranced around the tall grass. The other two gave each other deadpanned looks as they sighed at his excitability. He paused his dance in front of them with a huge grin on his face, "My step-mom had her cubs. Two boys."

"So many boys," grumbled Mana as she sunk farther into the grass. "I'm the only female cub in this pride. I'm lonely."

"Stop whining, Mana," commented Kyoya. "Let's go see the newborns. I want to greet them."

Her ears flickered forward as she heard his mumbled words. The girl nodded as she bounded after Gingka and him. The trio made it to Pride Rock as they bounded up the side of the giant rock. The three carefully stepped inside the den as they saw Gingka's stepmom resting after giving birth. Two small, deaf and blind cubs were cuddled against her stomach as they suckled on her milk. One of the cubs had a yellowish fur color, and the other had a pale tan fur color. The tufts at the end of the tails hadn't grown into their colors, but they were quite excited to see what color they'd turn out to be. Mana stared at the purple tuft at the end of her tail. She liked that color.

"Hello children," the new mother said as she purred. "Come say hi to Yu and Kenta."

The cubs moved a little at their names, but they didn't stop feeding. Mana gave out an 'aw' as she looked at them close up. They were so tiny, and it made her feel big. She was smaller than her playmates, and it saddened her slightly. The queen nuzzled the girl before pushing her away from the cubs with her muzzle.

"Be careful, Mana. You can hurt them without meaning too."

"I'm sorry," she squeaked as she backed away. "I didn't mean too. I was curious. They're so small."

"Of course they're small, dummy," commented Kyoya. "They were just born."

"Hmph," the lioness replied as she looked away from him.

"Why don't the three of you go play?" a deeper voice suggested.

"Dad!" grinned Gingka as he nuzzled him. "I'm going to be a big brother!"

"You are," laughed Ryo. "Now, go out and play. Your mother needs her rest."

Gingka nodded as he coerced his playmates to play tag. Ryo chuckled as he lay next to his mate. He licked one of the cubs before nuzzling her. She was happy that he had chosen her, and the queen couldn't be any happier. The pride was finally at piece, and she couldn't wait to see her cubs grow in this peaceful place.

_/_

Empress couldn't have been prouder as she watched her son play with the other cubs. He was stronger than them, and it had her grinning. He was perfect for her plans. Doji had to have known they were going to need a cub to mold for revenge. The lioness roared as she jumped between the cub and her son as they were play fighting. The cub ran to his mother afraid of the leader; she had that effect on others. Her son rubbed against her as he purred to know she was there to watch over him. The lioness licked the top of his head before petting him with her paw.

"Soon Ryuga," she purred in content. "Soon you'll be king. You'll be the most powerful in the Pride Lands. Training starts tomorrow as you have grown to be a fine young cub. Get some rest, dear Ryuga. You'll need it."

"Alright, mom," he said, yawning.

"Very good," the lioness said as she grinned wickedly. Her plans were beginning to be set in motion. Ryo will regret banishing her to the Barren Lands. He'll regret dethroning Doji – it's only a matter of time.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **I'd like to thank my first reviewer. I got a really quick review for this story. I'm excited. They had a lot of nice things to say as well. On to the next chapter!

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**Not One of Us – Chapter 2**

Lavender eyes sparkled as Mana watched Gingka in a crouching position. She was a proud lioness, and proud lionesses could hunt with pose and grace. Her butt wiggled before she tackled the unsuspecting prince. Gingka squealed as they tumbled down a hill. The both of them ended in a lump before Mana burst out laughing.

"You squealed … LIKE A GIRL!" she exclaimed. "Wait until I tell Kyoya!"

Gingka gave her a glare before wiggle out from underneath her. It had been a few months since his brothers were born, and they were slowly getting bigger. The cubs could venture out of the den; however, they couldn't leave pride rock. Their mother watched them like a hawk to prey. Mana snickered before she realized they had landed on the outskirts of the Barren Land.

"Uh oh."

"Uh oh is right," gasped Gingka as he realized their predicament. "We need to go before one of them sees us."

"R-Right," she stuttered bounding after him.

They crossed a fallen tree trunk to get to the other side as the hill they tumbled down was not easy to climb. The other side had a river, but they managed to find a tree to use as a bridge. Gingka managed to get to the other side before he heard a crack. The tree was rotten, and it wasn't very sturdy. Mana cried out in panic before she jumped to the Barren Lands once again.

"I'll be fine," she told him. "I'll be there as soon as you know it."

The young lioness went to find another way out of the lands without being caught. She huffed as she kept running through the few bushes and tall grasses in the barren wasteland. The outlanders weren't going to be hospitable to her; she knew this for a fact. Her tail slashed through the air as she tried to find a way across the gap between lands. The adult lions could easily jump over small gaps between the lands; however, she wasn't an adult lion. The girl stopped to catch her breath.

"I'm in trouble."

Meanwhile, Empress was busy training Ryuga to be a great fighter. The young cub was currently hunting small food. He was excellent in hunting, and she couldn't have been prouder of him. The cub was flying through his lessons. The hunter dug his claws in the dirt to get a feel of it before noticing the rodent fly past him. He snapped his maw around it quickly before killing it. His mother laughed as she clapped her paws for him.

"Excellent, my son! You're excelling at a fast rate with your training."

"It's easy, mother," he said with a bored tone. "I need more a challenge in fights. None of the other cubs want to play fight with me anymore."

"Now, now, Ryuga," she cooed as she hugged the cub to her. "I'm sure somebody will play with you."

Her ears swerved to a noise as she spotted a rather _lost _cub. Empress' grin melted off her face before it reappeared. Well, Ryuga had wanted somebody to play fight with at the moment. Why not the poor lost pridelander? The lioness had Ryuga look in the direction of the frightened cub.

"There's somebody. She's intruding. Why don't you go say hello?"

Ryuga grinned as he got into a crouching position. Empress laughed as she went to watch from afar. The little cub was paying no attention when a male cub attacked her out of nowhere. She squealed before pushing them off with a shot of strength. Lionesses tended to be stronger than their male counterpart (hey, they did all the hunting), so pushing him off wasn't a big deal.

"S-Stay away," she growled as her ears pinned back. "I-I mean it."

"Ah, the little lion is stuttering," he taunted. "What? Scared?"

"N-No," she said.

"I think you are," he mocked. "What are you doing here, pridelander?"

"How'd you know I was a ...?"

"Pridelander?" he finished her question. "Pridelanders have a distinct scent to them different than that of the outlanders. You can't hide."

"Well, I accidentally stumbled upon your land," she spat. "I want to leave."

The cub tackled her as he pinned her to the ground. Mana snarled as she swatted him with her paw, claws outstretched, but Ryuga bit her paw. She yowled in pain. He let go of it before letting her up. The girl whimpered as she cowered away from him. He played rough not like the other cubs she played with at Pride Rock.

"Very good, my son," Empress said as she appeared. "Pridelanders don't belong in the Barren Land. Trespass means _death_."

Mana shook as she tried to get farther away from them. Empress grinned as she took steps closer to the cub. The cub was scared, and she couldn't move. Empress had her maw around her neck when a voice stopped her.

"Mana!"

"Ryo," the lioness snarled. "In my land, are we?"

"I came for Mana," he said calmly. "Gingka told me they accidentally stumbled into your lands, Empress."

"Death is the punishment," she growled. "This cub deserves to DIE!"

Ryo roared as he pushed her away from Mana. Empress fell backwards before smacking her head off a rock. She yelped in pain from the fall. Ryuga stared, wide eyed, at his mother before golden eyes glared at Ryo. He snarled, but the older lion ignored him as he picked a shaking Mana up by the scruff. Soon enough, he had gone back to the Pride Lands with the girl.

"Mother!"

"I'm fine, little Ryuga. Now you see why we must take back power of the Pride Lands."

"Yes mother."

"Mana!" the other cubs shouted. "You're okay!"

The girl still shook in fear before Ryo nudged her toward his son and Kyoya with his paw. She stumbled to them before looing the strength to stand. She was scared for her life. Mana looked at her paw. It stopped bleeding a while ago, but it still stung. The trio sat on the edge of Pride Rock as they stared at the pride lands.

"The Barren Lands are a spooky place," commented Gingka.

"They're a scary place," mumbled Mana.

"Oh come on, it couldn't have been that bad," stated Kyoya.

The male lion cub had two sets of eyes glaring at him after he finished his statement.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **I want to thank everybody that reviewed the last couple of chapters. I'm happy all of you are enjoying it. It makes me want to write more chapters for the story. At the moment, I'm not quite sure how long _Not One of Us _will be as I have a lot of university class work, and I have to do research on my hometown's mine disaster. Not to mention, I'm basing this on _Lion King II_, but I haven't done research on the movie for a while. (And I haven't seen the movie in forever.)

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**Not One of Us – Chapter 3**

After the incident on the outskirts of the Barren Lands, peace returned to the pride. Time passed as the trio grew into great, young lions. Mana had grown into a beautiful lioness that had showed her elders that she was a great huntress; her ability to work with the others was astonishing. However, they grew concerned as she hardly talked to anybody; she communicated through body language. The lioness had grown introverted as she liked to be by herself even when her best friends were around to try and make it talk.

"Hey, Mana, let's go to the water hole and splash all the animals," Gingka suggested as he grinned at her.

Lavender eyes moved to him as the lioness sighed before shifting into a different position on her rock. She had been basking in the sun until a red mane lion decided to block the sun for her. She let out a yawn as she stretched. Mana sat straight as she stared at Gingka with uninterested eyes. The prince tilted his head as an ear twitched. Mana sighed as she started off toward Pride Rock.

"Sorry Gingka," she spoke. "I don't want to annoy the other animals. Maybe next time."

Gingka frowned as he watched her walk off. He noticed her right front paw had a certain limp to it, but she had it since their tumble into the Barren Lands. Did it have to do with the fact she was introverted? The lioness wasn't allowed to hunt on her own (or scout) since her right paw wasn't as strong as the other three. The lion sighed as he shook his head. His mane hadn't grown in fully, so it was annoying for him.

/

Muscles rippled underneath golden fur as Ryuga watched the antelope that had wandered too far from the Pride Lands; his luck was high. The lionesses of his pride were weak and hungry from lack of food. His shoulder moved as he pounced on it. The antelope bucked, but it was soon still as he had bit into its neck, the jugular, and grinned. He was a proud lion, and he was a powerful lion. Ryuga shook his head to remove some of his mane from his face. He grabbed the antelope by its neck and began a trek to the dens.

"Mother," he said dropping the antelope in front of her.

"Very good, Ryuga," she gasped. "You took down an antelope. We'll be eating like kings for the next few days!"

The lionesses roared as they saw the antelope. The praised Ryuga as he lay on a tree trunk while watching them eat. He need not a lot of food as they were older than him. The lionesses needed their strength when he was at the peak of his strength. Empress ate a piece of red meat whole before sitting beside her adopted son. Ryuga did not even looked at her as he continued to watch the others eat.

"You do me proud, my dear. I believe we can move onto the next stage of our plan."

"And that would be?" he asked, yawning. "Mother, I doubt anything I do would make the pridelanders trust me. I'm an outlander. I'm banished just like you."

"Ah," she purred. "But the genius is that you were a cub when we were banished. They could trust you easier than me."

Ryuga snorted before he stretched and stood. The lion looked at his mother from the corner of his eye before closing it. His mother had some scheme, and he was kind of afraid to know what this plan would be and when it would commence.

"You'll be in their pride in no time, son."

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**A/N: **The chapter was short, but I want to try and upload a chapter a day. Anyway, here is the reference to all the characters:

**Gingka **(Lion; Prince of the Pride Lands; best friend of Mana & Kyoya)

**Mana **(Lioness; Pridelander; best friend of Gingka & Kyoya)

**Kyoya **(Lion; Pridelander; best friend of Gingka & Mana)

**Ryo **(Lion; Gingka's father; king of the Pride Lands)

**Ryuga **(Lion; Outlander)

**Benkei **(Warthog; eventually Kyoya's best friend; Pridelander ally)

**Kenta **(Lion; brother of Gingka; one of the youngest)

**Yu **(Lion; brother of Gingka; one of the youngest)

**Madoka **(Lioness; member of the Pegasus pride; will be introduced later)

**Hikaru **(Bird; Ryo's royal advisor)

**Tsubasa **(Eagle; meets Yu eventually; was held captive in Africa)

**Rago **(*gasp* Spoiler; lion; Black Lion)

**Pluto **(Hyena; Rago's advisor)

**Masamune **(Antelope; Pridelander alley)

**Nile **(Lion; no know pride; Kyoya's friend)

**Rei **(Lioness; Pridelander)

**Couples: **

Gingka x Madoka

Kyoya x Rei

Ryuga x Mana


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: **I'm back for more action in NOU. I'm excited for this chapter. I really am. Woo!

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**Not One of Us – Chapter 4**

In hindsight, she probably shouldn't have snuck out of the den at early hours in the morning to hunt for antelope. Mana hadn't wanted to seem weak, because her paw made her incapable of hunting alone. The young lioness could hunt perfectly fine alone. She had no problem with it; her pride did have a problem with it. King Ryo refused to let her hunt alone in the Pride Lands. She didn't want to go after big prey; Antelope wouldn't do a lot of harm. She saw no big deal in hunting one herself.

"Let's prove them wrong, shall we Mana?" she whispered to herself. "You don't constantly need to be watched."

The lioness carefully stepped over a rock with her paws as she didn't want to startle the antelope herd in front of her. She wanted this to be perfect; the girl would soon prove her pride wrong, and she'd have nothing to worry about anymore. She crouched lower as to get into a pouncing position. They hadn't noticed her yet. It was perfect. She could taste the antelope meat.

**Snap! **

The antelopes' ears flickered toward the sound of a branch snapping. Mana felt the ground rumble before she noticed the herd of antelope running her way. Yes, one antelope wouldn't harm her too much. A herd of them was a different story entirely. The lioness yelped as she tried to outrun the swarm of deer. The antelope were slightly quicker than her, and they had a lot more stamina. It didn't take long for one of them to trample her. The lioness went down without effort as she scrambled to regain her running energy. Her lavender eyes flickered toward a tree before she took a running leap and landed on it. The lioness huffed and puffed as she watched the antelope run beneath her.

"I didn't make any noise," she said. "Why the hell did they start running in my direction?"

Her answers would wait to be answered as an antelope rammed into the tree. It cracked as Mana 'eeped' from the noise. Of course, the tree was rotten on the inside. How did she forget such a fact in this area? Another antelope rammed into it before the tree tumbled off the slope it was near. Mana tumbled as she smacked her head off a rock, effectively knocking her unconscious, and she fell into the river below. Why was hunting by yourself in the early morning such a good idea?"

/

Ryo paced back and forth as he waited for news of the whereabouts of Mana. Kenta had woken him saying that the lioness was missing. The boy liked to spend time with the lioness, and the kind and queen let him. Mana smiled around the boy, and she seemed happy to teach him things. He grew worried when Kenta was right; Mana was missing. He had the lionesses, Gingka and Kyoya looking for her. Though, the animal to gain his attention was a beautiful, blue African bird. The bird landed on a branch.

"Sire," said Hikaru. "I found Mana. She's at the river unconscious. A lion is with her!"

"Got it, Hikaru. Thank you."

He bounded off Pride Rock before heading to the river. He should have never caged her like he had because of her paw. None of this would have happened if he had let her do what she wished when hunting. The king felt this was his fault as he leaped and bounded toward the young lioness. Gingka, Kyoya and a few other lionesses soon joined him as they realized Ryo knew where Mana was at at the moment.

/

A moan escaped Mana's throat as she came out of her state of unconsciousness. The first thing she noticed was that she was soaked through her fur. The next thing she noticed was a lion with a growing white mane laying near her. The lion looked strangely familiar; the girl couldn't put her paw on it. A couch escaped her as water came out of her lungs. She sat shaking as her savior watched her before sitting himself. The lioness let out a snarl as she backed away from him. Mana had no idea if he saved her or if he was somebody that was going to hurt her.

"Scared?" he asked. "I only saved you from drowning."

Her ears perked as she heard his words. He saved her from drowning? Well, she supposed she owed him her thanks. The lioness went to speak as she moved her paw. Ryuga noticed the scar on it, and he let himself grin slightly. It was _that _lioness he saved from drowning. The cub that trespassed on Barren Land lands. He had no idea who he was saving, but this made it all the more interesting. So, he decided to rile her up.

"What was a pridelander doing hunting on their own? You weren't doing a very good job."

Mana paused from her thanks as a sense of da ja vu came flowing through her. The next action was a snarl to rip through her throat as she snapped her jaws at him. Ryuga moved no hair or paw as she tried to tackle him. He ducked as she rolled a few times before stopping on her head. The lion chuckled before standing and shaking the water off his fur. He went to speak again when another growl stopped his words. Ryo jumped in front of Mana as he snarled at the intruder. He knew the smell all too well even if some of it was washed with the river. Kyoya and Gingka surrounded Mana to make sure she was okay. Other lionesses soon surrounded all of them as well.

"What are you doing here, outlander?"

"Is this how you thank the person that saved one of your pride members?"

"You saved …" paused Ryo.

Ryuga's expression didn't change as he simple sat in his spot. He didn't move a muscle before a blue bird landed on Ryo's shoulder. The bird whispered something in his ear as Ryo sighed.

"As retribution to saving Mana, we have to ask of your wish at this moment."

"I only wish to join the pride," he said as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

Gingka snarled in place of his father. He didn't like this new lion. Mana glared at him; she didn't like the fact that the lion who scared her paw was wanting to join them. Hikaru whispered in Ryo's ear once more. The older lion sighed.

"You'll be on trial," he snarled. "One step out of place … and you'll get what you deserve. Do you have that?"

"Crystal. And, my name's Ryuga if you're wondering."

"We weren't really wondering," snapped Mana.

The lion only shrugged his shoulders before walking past her swatting her with his tail. The lioness tried to bite it but he was too quick as he flicked it away. Oh, she was going to hate this trial run. She just knew she was going to hate it.

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**A/N: **Chapter 4 everybody! Ryuga has officially gotten into the pride! On trial basis only though. Mana's not liking it.


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